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Energy prices to drop

The prices of heat for households should drop by 5 percent as of the beginning of next year. In the case of a three-room flat with an average consumption of 7,000 kilowatt hours, for example, that means a drop in annual expenses by €25.

“The drop will be visible especially in cases of heat produced by natural gas if next year is not colder than this one,” said Jozef Holjenčík, head of the Regulatory Office for Network Industries (ÚRSO), as quoted by the SITA newswire.

The spending on heat production from other fuels will not change, he added.

The regulator, however, originally wanted to decrease the price by 6 percent. It based its current proposal on some 80 percent of price decisions it has already issued, the Sme daily wrote.

ÚRSO still has to decide in 20 percent of cases, which may bring lower savings on heat prices.

“It will not differ very significantly,” Holjenčík said, as quoted by Sme, adding the difference should be really small, only some tenths of percents.

The heat producers addressed by Sme could not say exactly how much the prices will drop, saying that the new heat prices still have not been set.

Electricity will be cheaper too

ÚRSO also predicts that households will save on electricity prices, with the savings amounting to dozens of euros. The reason is the change to the structure of tariffs which reflects the real consumption in individual offtakes and respects the use of smart meters, Holjenčík said, as reported by SITA.

Also, industrial customers may expect a drop in electricity prices, as the regulator managed to objectify the real costs on transfer and distribution of electricity, Holjenčík added.

The prices for households should be lower by 4.3 percent on average.

ÚRSO also claims that the prices for natural gas used for heating should be lower and that households may save 2.6 percent on average. The cost of water will remain the same as this year, SITA reported.

The opposition Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) party warns, however, that not all households will save money on energies next year. ÚRSO’s tactics are based on the principle that they have been announcing the drop in end prices, said its MP Karol Galek.

“They forgot to say that this concerns only some people,” Galek continued, as quoted by SITA, adding that the tariff paid by households to support electricity produced from coal or renewable energy sources will increase next year.

The party also sees several abnormalities in price decisions, claiming that customers with higher electricity consumption will save money, while those with lower consumption will pay more.